Swept Away
by celticmusebooks
Summary: This story grew out of a song meme challenge. Set between TMP and WOK


Swept Away

_Author's Note This piece grew out of a song meme challenge and was inspired by the song SWEPT AWAY by Mary-Chapin Carpenter_

Christine Chapel labored her way through the seemingly endless parade of beings along the teeming concourse of Earth Spacedock.. The transporter lines in terminal C where she'd beamed in from Star Fleet in San Francisco were apparently no better than here in terminal A where the Enterprise crew was scheduled to beam down. She silently cursed the moron in charge of Transport Ops who had allowed seven Constitution class starships to put in at the same time.

The concourse was awash in the gleeful sounds of homecoming; parents joyfully welcoming children, children welcoming a returning parent, lovers lost in tearful embraces, old friends chattering excitedly catching up on the passages of time. Christine felt her own heart swell with happy anticipation.

It had been almost two years since she'd left her life on the Enterprise behind and accepted a planet side assignment in 'Fleet Ops. It was a great career move; or at least that had been the explanation she'd given her friends and shipmates. If they knew better, and it was likely they did, they had been gracious enough to spare her dignity and accept that reason without question.

_Except for McCoy!_**** Even now she bristled at the memory of the night she told him she was leaving the ship. He'd made no attempt to conceal his disapproval.

"_Damn it Chris, you can't keep running from life!"_

Why couldn't he understand? She was running for her life, not from it. She'd put the heartache of the first five year mission behind her; starting fresh with her MD in hand, on newly refitted ship, a new Captain and a mostly new young crew who wouldn't see her as the love struck young nurse chasing after the aloof , unobtainable Vulcan First Officer.

It had been a dream come true, at least for a fleeting moment. As with most of her dreams it quickly transformed itself into her worst nightmare. Out of the blue he'd returned to the ship, swooping in, saving them from V'ger. But no one came swooping in to save her from falling in love with him again. She'd had to do that for herself and the opening at Ops had been the answer to her prayers. Seventy two hours later she'd been on this very concourse headed for Starfleet Headquarters in San Francisco.

But now the Enterprise was putting in to Earth Spacedock for some refits and supplies and that meant shore leave for the crew. Christine could barely contain her excitement at the prospect seeing Nyota and Jan again. She pulled her wheeled travel bag against the terminal wall and watched the crowd for her friends. Within the hour they'd all be on a shuttle for the Amalfi coast of Italy for two weeks of much needed sun and fun.

It was the woman she saw first moving toward her, a graceful, petite woman with long golden blonde hair and sparkling pale blue eyes. She seemed painfully familiar, but before Chris could begin to place her the woman's companion came into view. Without warning she was staring into the dark eyes of the man she had been certain she'd never see again. _Damn, what was he doing here?_ _Command staff always comes in via shuttle on the other side of the facility. _she felt her face beginning to flush.

The massive terminal suddenly seemed to grow curiously smaller, considerably warmer and Christine felt the unmistakable trembling of her knees. It was fortunate that she'd chosen a space against the wall as she was fairly certain it was the only thing keeping her upright.

_This isn't happening_, she assured herself, though all evidence seemed to contradict that theory. Floodgates of ecstasy and agony opened simultaneously and for a terrifying moment she felt as if she would drown in the deluge of bittersweet memories. She'd spent the last two years of her life getting over this man, of getting her life back on track; but now all of her hard work seemed swept away as effortlessly as a sand castle at high tide.

She was afraid to speak; terrified that, once again, she'd make an utter fool of herself. Why did he always have that effect on her? _Breathe Christine_, she admonished herself sternly_. It's bad enough that the love of your life isn't in love with you, but damn it if you're going to let him see you as some pathetic lovesick fool._

Mercifully, it was the blonde haired woman who broke the uncomfortable silence. "Nurse Chapel?" she asked softly extending her hand. "It's Christine isn't it? I'm Leila, Leila Kalomi . You took care of me on the Enterprise."

"It is Doctor Chapel now," the Vulcan corrected her as he set down one of the massive travel bags he was carrying.

Numbly Christine grasped the proffered hand, praying that it would stop her own hand from trembling. She certainly hadn't forgotten the exquisite flaxen haired beauty at Spock's side. She and Spock had been… well it depended on which rumor mill one subscribed to but they'd been significantly more than friends, at least until the Omicron Ceti spores wore off.

"Of course," she struggled to form a coherent thought. "Dr Kalomi." I've read some of your recent articles on therapeutic uses of Berthold radiation."

"You have had some rather fascinating articles published recently as well Doctor." Spock remarked nodding. He seemed to be watching her closely- probably afraid she'd break down and profess her undying love for him in front of his beautiful Leila.

"I'm waiting for Nyota and Janice" she said anxiously, feeling that she must somehow justify her presence here before them.

"You will be spending time with them on their shore leave?" he asked, seeming almost genuinely interested. Perhaps spending time Dr. Kalomi was helping him to bone up on his "soft skills", Chris wondered.

"Yes," she responded. "We've rented a little villa on the beach along the Almafi Coast of Italy for two weeks."

"Oh all of that sun and sand sounds heavenly," Lelia chimed in, "it's freezing in New York and I don't have a coat."

"But it's so lovely there in the wintertime, so romantic…" Christine broke off suddenly before the mental picture of the love of her life and the petite blonde beauty, their sweaty bodies entwined before a roaring fire, became any clearer.

"Well, it's been nice running into you both," Christine attempted to take the edge off the lie by punctuating it with her most sincere smile, "but I've got to find Ny and Jan."

I believe they were in the group immediately behind us" Spock responded, with a slight rise of his eyebrow. "They should be here in approximately 5.77 minutes."

"Approximately? I've never know you to equivocate Mr. Spock."

"Well, "the Vulcan responded thoughtfully, "there are certain variables, the gait of the two women, the gait of the travelers in front of them…"

Christine let out a hearty laugh. "Oh Spock…" she'd started to say _I've missed you_, but instead said simply "Enjoy your shore leave."

The Vulcan raised an elegant upturned eyebrow, and the faintest of smiles touched the corners of his mouth. "And you as well Christine."

She watched the couple walk down the Concourse to the shuttle bays until they'd disappeared into crowd. _"Christine?"_ She shook her head in puzzlement and laughed, not sure if it was funny or sad that after nearly a decade he'd finally called her by her first name without prompting.

On the other side of the concourse she spied one of the dozens of bars where the travel weary found respite from their galactic journeying. If she'd learned one thing from Leonard McCoy it was that when the going gets tough, nothing gets the job done like a shot of Kentucky Bourbon.

The bartender was approaching with her second shot seven minutes later when Ny and Jan joined her at the bar.

"What's wrong sugah?" Uhura asked after signaling the short blue skinned man behind the bar to bring two more shots. "You look like you've just seen a ghost."

"Nothing that the 'ol Reverend Jack here can't exorcise," Christine laughed and raised her glass in a mock toast to her friends. "Where are Scotty and Hikaru?"

"The guys will be meeting us at the shuttle," Jan responded, and Chris was sure she'd seen a conspiratorial glance pass between her two friends

Christine gave the pair a stern frown. "Okay, something's up. Please don't tell me you've brought along a blind date for me."

"No," Ny answered tentatively then turned to Jan.

"Definitely not," Jan agreed.

"It's…something else. Spock…" Ny stared into her glass for a moment as if searching the amber liquid for the right words.

Christine sighed. "It's okay Ny, really, I already know,"

"You know?" Uhura responded, clearly surprised.

"I saw him, well them, Spock and Lelia. They're on their way to New York for shore leave."

"It's not shore leave honey," Uhura said lowering her voice. "That's what I was going to tell you. Spock has transferred off the ship; the Admiral told the bridge crew last night at the end of shift."

Christine's was barely able to contain her surprise. Spock was an integral part of the Enterprise, like the warp coils or phaser array. The friendship the taciturn Vulcan had forged with Admiral James Kirk was the stuff of legends. It was unfathomable that Spock would walk away from that…. but of course

"Leila." Christine said aloud shaking her head with sudden understanding.

"I didn't know he was with Leila." Nyota added shaking her head apologetically. "We picked her up a few weeks ago with some other scientists coming to Earth for a symposium."

"Chris." Jan reached out a hand to comfort her friend. ."

"Hey, sweetie," Nyota patted Christine's hair maternally; "If you want we can send Scotty and Sulu off on their own and make this a girls only trip."

"No," Christine shook her head emphatically, "Really, I'm fine guys. I'm going to drink a lot of Italian wine, get a fabulous tan and round up every cheesy happy ending romance holo I can find, set them all on fire and roast marshmallows."

"Honey," Ny reached over and captured her friend's hand. "Spock…"

Christine raised her hand and cut her friend off quickly.

"I am hereby proclaiming this a Vulcan Free Zone," she laughed, then signaled the bartender for another round. "This bar, the shuttle and all of Italy is now a Vulcan Free Zone."

"But Chris," Janice protested.

"Vulcan Free Zone!" she repeated in a tone that didn't invite further discussion. "So," Christine smiled wickedly, "the three of us, Monty and Sulu, and a three bedroom beach house." The tapped her finger against her lips as if pondering a complex medical procedure. "However will we divide the bedrooms?"

Nyota laughed and Janice actually blushed. Nyota signaled for another round of drinks and the three old friends chatted amiably catching up on all that had transpired in the time they'd been apart.

Christine checked her watch then abruptly picked up her travel bag. "We need get a move on if we want to make that shuttle."

Uhura settled with the bartender and then the three women made a mad dash to the far side of the terminal where the planet bound shuttles docked.

….

Spock hoisted the last of the bags into the overhead luggage compartment.

_How could one woman bring so much for such a short journey? _ he mused_, but not have the good sense to bring a coat to New York in the middle of winter.._

"_High maintenance." _It was a term that he'd heard the Captain use on occasion to describe a certain type of woman. He would now have a frame of reference for that term he decided as he gave the compartment door a firm shove to close it.

He struggled against the building sense of annoyance he felt toward the petite blonde woman at his side. The past three weeks with her aboard the Enterprise had been discomfiting to say the least. She had missed no opportunity to engage him in conversation or social interaction, to ingratiate her self with his friends, or create a seemingly endless string of pretexts for them to be alone together.

Ever the diplomat's son, he had tried to rebuff her interest gently, but she seemed to have taken his disinterest as some sort of challenge Even now, her request that he help transport her luggage to the shuttle was an obvious ploy for them to be together.

_"I remembered her as being prettier." _Why was Leila's comment after the encounter with Christine still bothering him? Christine had looked so lovely, the dark hair making her sapphire eyes even bluer. It has been pleasing to see her again, yes most pleasing indeed. It troubled him that she had been so obviously ill at ease in his presence; but of course he realized, not his presence, their presence. She would, no doubt, have assumed that he and Leila were traveling together, would have drawn certain inferences.

Strange, but his thoughts had been drawn to her lately with increasing frequency. The encounter with V'ger had shown him the sterility of the path he had chosen for himself and the need to achieve balance between his human and Vulcan selves. Surak had once said that there were always possibilities. There was a time when Christine Chapel had been one of his possibilities, but he'd been too arrogant, too certain that his path must be a totally Vulcan path.

The sound of the final boarding call broke his reverie.

"May your journey be free of incident Doctor." He nodded to Leila formally, indulging himself with the mild sense of pleasure he felt in finally being rid of her.

"You could still come with me." she said hopefully.

He shook his head tightly and his voice softened. "I am sorry Leila, I have told you that is not possible."

The he pulled himself up in to a more formal stance. "Live Long and Prosper"

"And you as well, Spock," she answered softly.

…..

Spock moved to the VIP line at the shuttle ticket counter. Rank did have its privileges, though his Vulcan sensibilities would normally have steered him into the line with the other passengers. The shuttle for San Francisco wouldn't be leaving for 41.73 minutes so the advantage of getting a ticket quickly seemed illogical.

"Good Afternoon Captain" the perky red haired Orion woman greeted him after checking his identification. "And where are you going today?"

"San Francisco Starfleet Headquarters San Francisco," he said, "Holding out his credit chip.

The transaction took but a few keystrokes and she handed him his credit chip and the shuttle ticket. He stared at the ticket uncertainly for a moment, turning the tiny chip over in his hand then shook his head and sighed.

"Illogical, completely illogical." he grumbled.

"Is something wrong Captain?" the Orion woman enquired

"Is the Rome Shuttle still boarding?" he asked.

She scrolled through several screens and nodded. "Ten minutes until final boarding and you're in luck, there's one seat left."

Instinctively he opened his mouth to explain to the young woman that luck was an illogical superstition devised by primitive beings to explain random phenomena that their undeveloped intellect could not comprehend.

Instead he slid the credit chip and the ticket to San Francisco back toward her.

"One ticket for the Rome Shuttle."

…

The three women were greeted at the boarding station for the Rome shuttle by a clearly agitated Montgomery Scott. A stern look at his watch told them that they'd come close to missing final boarding. Nyota whispered something softly to the Chief Engineer, it sounded to Christine to be Swahili, and the Scotsman's face softened. He whispered something in Nyota's ear and her dark eyes widened in surprise.

The Chief Engineer, ever the gentleman, took the women's bags and led them onto the crowded transport. Christine resisted the urge to look down the concourse to where the New York shuttle was boarding. It was a minor victory, she conceded, but a victory none the less.

Scotty pointed toward the front of the craft where Hikaru Sulu was stowing his bags in the compartment above the seats. Scotty and Ny took a pair of seats together and Jan did her best to look innocent as she and Sulu paired off as well.

It was pretty obvious she'd be bunking alone for the duration of the shore leave Christine mused feeling no trace of bitterness. She felt a genuine sense of pleasure for her friends- maybe she wouldn't burn every romance holo after all.

Christine headed toward the empty aisle seat in front of Ny and Monty, attempting to contain an irrational surge of annoyance that the window seat was taken. _People who come at the last second should be grateful for a seat at all_, she chided herself.

She hoped her seatmate wouldn't be too chatty as the bourbon shots were beginning to catch up with her and the three hour shuttle trip would offer a perfect opportunity to sleep off the effects of the alcohol.

It took a concerted effort not to gasp as her seatmate looked up at her.

"You appear to be on the wrong shuttle Captain." Christine said, surprised by the edge in her voice. "This isn't the shuttle to New York."

"I'm quite aware of that Doctor," he responded, his voice colored with a vague sense of amusement. "I have neither a reason nor the desire to go to New York."

"What about Leila… Dr Kalomi?"

"One would infer, logically, that she had some combination of reason and or desire as she is presently on the shuttle for New York. I did not enquire into any specific detail of her plans. She engaged my assistance moving her luggage, and as I had adequate time to assist her and make it to the shuttle for San Francisco I did, in fact assist her."

"But … this isn't the shuttle for San Francisco."

He sighed softly in a most unVulcanlike state of exasperation. "I am quite aware of that as well Christine."

"Well then what are you doing on this shuttle?" she asked pointedly, her growing irritation fueled by equal parts by his unanticipated invasion of her carefully crafted Vulcan Free Zone and five shots of Kentucky's finest.

"I am on this shuttle because it is going to Rome, which is where I am coincidentally going as well. A shuttle is a means of getting from one point to another. Really Christine, this is hardly rocket science."

"You're going to Italy? And when the hell did you start calling me 'Christine'?

"It is still your name, is it not?"

"Yes it is. Did it take you ten years to figure that out?" Christine shook her head in exasperation. "Okay, enough with all the Vulcan answer a question with a question crap. Why are you on this shuttle going to Italy?"

"Christine, you need to take your seat we're about to take off."

"What makes you think I'm taking this seat?" she shot back.

"Apart from it being the only remaining seat on the shuttle?" he said, making no effort now to hide his amusement, "It will give us an opportunity to make plans as to how we may best utilize our leave time. Sit down Christine."

"You're coming with us to Amalfi?" she asked, dropping into the seat next to him more from shock than his insistence that she do so.

"Indeed," he responded with the characteristic upraised eyebrow that was suddenly becoming massively annoying. "You do not find that prospect pleasing?"

"I'm not sure exactly what I think at the moment. Where are you going to sleep?" she asked regretting the question before it had left her lips.

He regarded her for a moment, his dark eyes suddenly soft, so very soft. "That, of course" he answered, his deep voice almost a whisper, "will be entirely your decision."

"I'm not sleeping with you."

"That is acceptable," he answered with mock severity before moving his lips close to her ear. "I find myself far more interested in our waking interactions."

"Okay, you're seriously scaring me now." she sighed pulling back from him and reclaiming her personal space. "Though it pains me to use the phrase, I'm finding your current behavior 'highly illogical'."

""Indeed," he answered, "I too find little logic involved in what is happening here, although I confess I do not feel unduly disturbed by that fact."

Suddenly she moved closer to him, her gaze growing concerned. "Is this that seven year.."

"No," he responded emphatically.

"We'll, that's a relief, don't' even think of trying that 'have sex with me or I'll die' line."

"I shall endeavor to refrain from doing so."

"Can you even…I mean, outside of the seven year…you know… well I mean there are rumors…but, well," she stammered, realizing her face must be as red as a terran beet.

"I believe that you will soon have the opportunity to learn the answer to you questions for yourself," he answered softly. "As a scientist, I would assume you would prefer experiential data to anecdotal data."

"Why are you doing this? Why now?" she asked anxiously not sure she wanted to know the answer.

"I am not certain I have an answer that you will understand. I have long desired you, but did not desire the complications that such a relationship would bring into my life." He bowed his head for a moment before speaking again.

"I thought only of myself… my selfishness caused you pain," he brought his eyes up to meet hers and saw the beginning of tears, "I am not proud of that Christine.

"I would like to spend time with you, for us, to spend time together. I find that I desire to be with you. Do you still desire to be with me?"

Slowly he reached out and tenderly brushed a tear from her cheek.

"Do you not think we've wasted enough time protesting against our natures?"

His lips every so gently brushed against her ear and his fingers touched lightly against her cheek, and for a blinding moment she was awash in a stream of his thoughts and astoundingly emotions. _Emotions! _

_Yes Christine, Vulcans have emotions. _His voice echoed in her mind. _But you have always undersood that have you not?_

_Yes, _she answered through the fledgling link between them. _And you're still sleeping on the couch_! she added_._

He pulled her into a gentle embrace. _It is our waking activities that are foremost on my mind. Why is it that I must continually restate the obvious? You have no doubt spent too much time with Doctor McCoy. I can see that I will have my work cut out for me retraining you._

Before Christine protest he drew her into a long tender kiss.

_Christine, what is a Vulcan Free Zone?_

Nyota Uhura slid the door of the small shuttle fresher closed, and as she slowly padded back to her seat she saw Christine and Spock wrapped in a soft embrace.

The small woman chucked softly and shook her head, her ebony eyes filled with mirth.

"About damned time!" she whispered to the gods of every universe, "about damned time!"


End file.
